Three German youth badminton pairings advanced to the round of 16 at the U15 European Championships in Sotra, Norway, following a dramatic day of knockout matches highlighted by a comeback victory in the boys’ doubles tournament, badminton.de reported.
Hintze and Besser Stage Late Comeback in Boys’ Doubles
Matti Hintze and Till Besser delivered a tense sequence in the boys’ doubles bracket. Facing Spain’s N. Alonso and D. Pinto, the German duo dropped the opening set and faced a 20-17 deficit in the deciding third set. Hintze and Besser eventually closed out a 23-21 win.
The were actually already out, were trailing 20:17 in the third and still turned it around,
North Rhine-Westphalia chief state coach Benjamin Tzschoppe said of the comeback.
The pair advanced to face the tournament’s second-seeded Danish duo in the next round. Hintze and Besser built an 18-15 lead in the second set before the Danish pairing recovered to eliminate the Germans.
Mixed Doubles and Girls’ Doubles Successes in Norway
Matti Hintze secured a second spot in the round of 16 by partnering with Ineke Block in the mixed doubles event. The German pair defeated Hungary’s M. Szabolcs and F. Feind in straight sets, 21-9, 21-13.
Ineke Block also advanced in the girls’ doubles alongside Ruby Xu. The German duo defeated Switzerland’s E. Duc and N. Germann 21-18, 21-7 to secure their place among the final 16 pairs.
Alfred Berthold and Theodor Schröder added a boys’ doubles victory for the delegation, defeating Cyprus players M. Panagiotou and C. Petsas 21-15, 21-7.
Next Stage Awaits in Sotra
Germany enters the next phase of the championship with three remaining pairs across the draws: Hintze and Besser in boys’ doubles, Block and Xu in girls’ doubles, and Hintze and Block in mixed doubles.
Overall we are represented with three round of 16s, one men’s doubles, one mixed and one women’s doubles and want to somehow compete for the medals tomorrow,
Tzschoppe said.
We just have to play our best badminton here from round to round, cannot afford any gaps and just have to go full throttle,
Tzschoppe stated.
